What's New On Hoopla for December?

 Here are some of the great new books now available on Hoopla Digital for you to borrow in December:

The Girl Who Wasn't There by Penny Joelson: Kasia is a watcher. Watching is all she can really do, since her illness keeps her from leaving her home most of the time. Unfortunately for Kasia, this means she is usually bored, since nothing really happens on her quiet little street. That is, until the day Kasia witnesses what she believes is a kidnapping. A kidnaping that is also witnessed by another girl Kasia sees watching from a window across the street from her own. But, when Kasia sets out to find the other witness, so they can both report what they have seen and potentially save a kidnap victim, things get even stranger, because the girl Kasia saw in the window, doesn't seem to exist at all. 

The Liar's Guide to the Night Sky by Brianna R. Shrum: Hallie is NOT happy that her parents are making her move during the last semester of her Senior year. She's ESPECIALLY not happy that they've moved her to Colorado, all the way across the country from all her friends in Massachusetts. It couldn't possibly get any worse... and the it does. When on a family camping trip in the freezing Colorado wilderness Hallie and her family fall victim to an avalanche, and with people in desperate need of medical care, Hallie decides to brave the extreme environment in order to try to help them survive. 

This Splintered Silence by Kayla Olson: Lindley is a new kind of pioneer. She is a crew member on Space Station Luca, daughter of the Captain and one of the first of a new generation born in space. Then comes the horrible day when a virus breaks out, killing just about every first-generation crew member, and leaving teenage Lindley in charge of a broken station, quickly running out of food and unable to contact Earth for assistance. This seems terrible enough, until the day one of Lindley's fellow second generation crew members develops symptoms that look terrifyingly similar to the disease that wiped out their parents. But is disease really what's happening here? Or is one the crew secretly a murderer?

Four Three Two One by Courtney Stevens: One year after surviving a horrific bus bombing in New York City that claimed 19 people's lives, Go Jennings is struggling to heal and move forward with her life. Her boyfriend, Chandler, another survivor, refuses to talk about it at all, and Go NEEDS someone, anyone to talk to. So she reaches out to some of the other survivors in the hopes of forming some sort of support group. But will Go's actions do more harm than good? And can you really ever get over something so massive that it changes your life forever?

New Manga for Checkout!

Can you believe it's already December? The year might be over, but we're not done bringing you new books to check out and love. Here are some of the best new manga titles that have just arrived in our teen rooms around the district and are ready for you to borrow. 

Blue Period by Tsubasa Yamaguchi (winner of the 2020 Manga Taisho Award! Rated "Older Teen" for mild language & LGBT themes): Yatora is the perfect high school student, he gets good grades and has a lot of friends. But he finds his life dull, and nothing excites him. One day, he wanders into the art room at school and is captured by the beauty of a lone painting that sparks life into him. He dives head first into learning everything there is about art and even joining the art club. Join Yatora on his new journey as he discovers himself, makes new friends who also have a passion for art and sees the world anew!

Weathering With You - story by Makoto Shinkai (Director of Your Name) and art by Wataru Kubota. (Rated "Teen" for mild language and teenage drama): Based on the breathtaking movie (which you can watch free on our library resource, Hoopla), Hodaka runs away from home during the summer of his first year of high school to Tokyo. Alone and exhausted from traveling, he decides to kill time at local fast food place where he meets Hina who works there. Little does he know, she possess power that affects the weather and not just in Tokyo but the whole world. Hodaka, wants to save Hina and tries to do everything in his power to do so because the love he feels for her. With themes about love and sacrifice, this beautiful and heartfelt story will move you and is a must read for fans of Your Name.

Dramacon: 15th Anniversary 3-in-1 volume Omnibus Edition by Svetlana Chmakova. (Rated "Older Teen" for some foul language, abusive relationship & relationship drama): Join amateur writer Christie at her first comic con! She gets to be in artist alley where she promotes the manga she started with

her artist boyfriend. But as the con goes on, she starts to see and hear how boyfriend treats her terribly. Then a she meets mysterious cosplayer named Matt. She feels more of a connection with Matt than her own boyfriend and starts to fall for Matt. As the two get to know each other the drama unfolds at the con! Will Christie have the courage to tell her boyfriend how she feels about the way he treats her and break it off? And how do you deal with developing feelings for a guy you just met and who lives across the country?  This is a 3-in one complete collection featuring the full manga, and is perfect for anyone who has ever been to a con or has dreamed of going to one. 

Puella Magi Madoka Magica: The Complete Omnibus Edition- story by Magica Quarter and Art by Hanokage. (Rated "Older Teen" for fantasy violence and fighting, some blood and LGBT themes): When a mysterious transfer student joins her class, Madoka Kaname cannot help but think she has seen this dark-hair girl in her dreams. In her dream she is approach by a cat-like creature who offers the opportunity to make a wish to change destiny. Madoka has always thought that stuff like magic was fantasy… that is until she actually sees the new transfer student transform and fight witches! And the cat-like creature is actually real and is giving her chance to become a magical girl. What will be the cost of having her wish come true, and will Madoka take the offer? Find out in this omnibus manga edition based on the hit anime!

New on Hoopla Digital

 Hoopla is loaded with new titles for you to borrow from the comfort of home on any web-enabled device. Just create a profile using your library card number and you can borrow up to 10 titles a month, and it's not just books either. Hoopla also lets you stream movies and music and download audiobooks and comics. Here are some of our favorite new titles available now:

Five Total Strangers by Natalie D. Richards: Mira is halfway to Pittsburgh to spend Christmas with her mom as the city is hit by a truly epic blizzard that cancels the final flight of her trip. Desperate to get home, Mira accepts a ride share with some college kids she made friends with on her flight. But as conditions get worse, she realizes these people don't know each other at all. She's trapped in a car with a bunch of strangers, and horrible weather conditions... but one of the passengers seems to be determined that none of them will make it to their destination alive. 

Pretty Funny For a Girl by Rebecca Elliott: Hayla is a girl with a dream: one day she hopes to be a stand-up comedian. She knows it's a cutthroat business, and that it's mostly dominated by middle aged white guys, but she knows she's funny and is determined to make it big. Then she meets super hottie Leo, who is also on the path to becoming a famous comic and offers Hayla a chance to co-write some of his sets. Hayla's friends don't rust Leo, and keep telling Hayla he's just using her, but Hayla doesn't want to listen for one particular reason: she's afraid she might be falling in love with Leo. 

We Were Restless Things by Cole Nagamatsu. Noemi's best friend is dead. He died under the most mysterious of circumstances, too: drowned on dry land, with no lakes or other bodies of water to be found for miles of where his body was discovered. Only Noemi knows the truth: there is a lake hidden in the woods, and only Noemi has the ability to find it. This is where Link died... or did he? Because now, Noemi is starting to get weird messages from someone claiming to be her dead best friend. And the messages are a warning of terrible things to come. 

Winter, White and Wicked by Shannon Dittemore: Sylvi lives a very unusual life. She's an orphan, and lives all alone in her truck on the island of Layce, which is cursed by a never-ending winter. Sylvi is actually pretty ok with her life though - no one really bothers her, and she has a really great best friend Lenore and the protection of an ice spirit to keep her company. That is until the day Lenore runs away to join a band of northern rebels, and Sylvi gets roped into a dangerous smuggling operation in order to try to saver her beloved friend. 

New Manga in November

 Fresh hot new manga series have just arrived at the YCLD and they're ready for you to check out from your nearest branch! Here are four of our favorites!

Fushigi Yugi - Byakko Senki by Yuu Watase: 24 years after the original Fushigi Yugi manga finished its original, massively successful run, we are once again invited to journey into the Universe of the Four Gods. The setting is 1923, and Suzuno's father is the keeper of a very special book: The Universe of the Four Gods, a book which Suzuno has been warned since childhood is only every supposed to be touched by men. But, when a massive earthquake strikes and Suzuno and her father become trapped, dad makes the ultimate decision: to saver his daughter's life by letting her touch the book - and allowing her to be sucked into its pages and into the Universe of the Four Gods. 

Manga Yokai Stories - Ghostly Tales from Japan by Lafcadio Hearn: Ok, yes, we know, Halloween is over, but come on! It's always a good time for a creepy story! This book contains seven different creepy short stories, illustrated in manga form spanning some of the creepiest legends from Japanese history. The illustrations are both beautiful and creepy, and there's something here for fans of all kinds of creepy stories from ghosts, to haunted items and more. 

Sayonara Football by Naoshi Arakawa: Nozomi wants nothing more in the world than to play football (soccer). It's her complete obsession. Unfortunately there are no leagues in her area for girls, and the boys do not ant her on their team. When she finally meets Midori and Sumire, a couple of other female players (who also happen to be bitter cross-town rivals) she sees this as her chance to be accepted and make a team... if she can bring the two rivals together somehow. The problem is, despite her obsession and tough talk, Nozomi is kind of a terrible soccer player, and is constantly kicking goals into her own net! 

Spy X Family by Endo Tatsuya: Twilight is the world's greatest spy, and has just been assigned his most complex mission of all time. Unfortunately for him, the mission requires him to infiltrate a super fancy private school, which means Twilight needs a family, so he can have a child to enroll in the school. At the world's shadiest orphanage, Twilight finds a little girl named Anya, who he figures will do just fine. What he doesn't know is that Anya is actually psychic and can read his mind, so she knows exactly what he's up to, and thinks she's the luckiest kid alive to be adopted by a real-life spy. When Twilight meets shy, unassuming Yor he figures he has also found himself the perfect fake wife... except for the fact that Yor is the world's deadliest assassin. No one realizes this except mind-reader Anya though, and stuff starts to get SUPER weird and SUPER fun!

What's New in November

 Hi everyone! It's a new month, and we are starting to get all kinds of new books for you to check out throughout the YCLD! Here are some of our favorite titles in print that we have available for you to borrow:

Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron: It's been 200 years since Cinderella met her prince at the royal ball, and things have changed in her kingdom. Now, teenage girls are required to attend an annual ball where the eligible men of the kingdom choose their brides. Girls who are not chosen at the ball disappear without a trace. 16 year old Sophia is not about to take that chance, especially because she is in love with her friend Erin, so she decides she has to flee before it's too late. 

Elysium Girls by Kate Pentecost: This alternative history books has elements of sci-fi and steampunk, set in 1930's Oklahoma. Sal lives in the city of Elysium, and has just been selected to train with Mother Minerva, local witch and city leader. But when she makes friends with a demon in disguise, some bad stuff goes down, and Sal is unceremoniously booted out of town. So what does Sal do? Well, she joins a gang, of course. No just any gang either, a gang of fierce women who ride mechanical horses and use magic to try to stop the oncoming apocalypse. 

Girl, Unframed by Deb Caletti: Everyone thinks Sydney is incredibly lucky to be the daughter of one of the most famous movie stars in the world. Everyone, that is, except Sydney, who knows her famous mom Lily is a hot mess. It's why Sydney has mostly been raised by her grandmother, and only spends some of her vacations with her mom, and usually with one of her mom's gross creepy boyfriends. Which is exactly what happens when Sydney goes to stay with Lily and her current boyfriend Jake, a violent creep who might be involved in some really shady business ventures. We don't want to give away too much, but we will tell you that parts of the book are told through court exhibits for a trial, and the ending to this one is a shocker. 

Six Angry Girls by Adrienne Kisner: Raina has the perfect life, with a great boyfriend, great grades, and roles in all the school plays. That is, until she gets dumped by her boyfriend, her drama club friends and her dream college all at the same time. Completely wrecked, Raina turns to a local advice columnist whose advice leads her to a chance meeting with Millie, who is out for revenge after being kicked out of the Mock Trial club she basically built from the ground up. Together they set out to change the rules, and smash the patriarchy in time for graduation.

Fandom Notebooks DIY

Hello Teens! This is Nikki taking over today’s blog post to show you how to do another DIY craft at home and this one is super easy to do! Since we know you are pretty much all back to school, I thought it would be fun to do a school related craft! I will be teaching you how to personalize your school notebooks to show off your favorite fandom. Let’s take a look at the supplies you need first before we go into the steps.

List of supplies:

 School notebook

 Acrylic paints of your choice and paintbrushes

 Pencil or pen to draw out design OR

 Print out photo(s) of favorite fandom characters

 Mod Podge (to paste photos, and it dries clear)

 Paper plates to hold your paints and Mod Podge

 Newspaper or tablecloth to not make a mess

Example of supplies you may need.

Step 1: Deciding on a theme or character

Decide on a fandom character or characters you want to paint or print out pictures of. Since I cannot draw, I just printed out a picture of Senku from Dr. Stone since my notebook will be my science notebook. The paper is just regular printer paper. I chose to print out a character that tied in to my subject, but you can print out any you want! For my paints, I decided I wanted an ombre green background to go with Senku’s green hair. If you are going to only use paints instead of printouts, then you should use a pencil or pen to draw your character on the front of your notebook first. This will help you when it comes to painting so you don’t have to free hand it. If you are not sure what to do, feel free to do Internet search of DIY fandom notebooks or DIY Anime notebooks for inspiration. There are a lot photos and videos to get ideas!

Step 2: It’s Painting time!

It is time to paint your notebook. Make sure you put down some newspaper, a tablecloth or scratch paper so you do not dirty your table. If you are using a photo, paint your entire notebook whatever  color or colors you want first, before gluing on your print-outs. You may have to use more than one coat to cover your notebook fully. For my notebook, I had to do about three coats. Make sure to let it dry in between coats. I like using a big paintbrush or a sponge brush to help cover the entire notebook and I try to use downward paint strokes to make the paint look smooth, like in the example pictures below. 

After just one coat of paint. 

After several coats of paint. 

Step 3: Gluing your photo and adding extra embellishments

Once your entire notebook is dry, it is time to adhere the pictures you printed out! Put a

little bit of mod podge glue on your plate and use a paintbrush or sponge LIGHTLY on the back your photo. You do not want to drench your photo in mod podge because it will get too wet and it can start to fall apart. Place it on the front of your notebook and smooth it out as best as you can. I like to

work from inside to out. Also, if you have it available, printing out your pictures on sticker paper will make it so you won't have to use Mod Podge at all. 

Mod Podge your paper carefully, don't over-wet it. 

If any corners start to pucker upwards, you can use your finger and dab a little podge on the back. If you want to, you can Mod Podge the front of the photo to have extra security, just be sure to do it lightly. Mod podge dries fairly quickly, so you do need to work fast. If you want to add extra decorations like alphabet stickers like I did to spell out what subject your notebook is (see my example below. My alphabet stickers were too big so I could not spell out Science fully, oops lol). Make sure you measure how big your alphabet stickers should be to be able to fit properly! or paint what subject it is. You can even use washi tape and other stickers to personalize it. If you are finding your washi tape is not sticking to the cover, you can use a little bit of mod podge too to adhere the washi tape to your notebook.

Oops! Forgot to measure my letters!

Once your notebook is done you can show it off to your friends. Send us a picture to show you joined in on this craft at teen@yumalibrary.org! We would love to

see your creations!

Fun fact: Did you know creating art can actually help our mental health by letting you de-stress? Research has shown that doing something creative helps distract and ease our minds, which helps relax our bodies. It is why people love to do art or just sit and color in coloring books. So make sure to take some self-care time and do something creative if you are feeling stressed. Check out my other craft posts: The Paperchild Chibi Challenge and Kawaii Journaling if you want more fun activities to do at

home.

Lastly, if you are interested in any library books or resources to help with school, including studying habits and organizing, here are some you can place a hold for from our library collection or borrow from Hoopla with your library card:

   

I Hope you enjoyed this post and look forward to the next DIY craft idea!

New Manga For Checkout!

We have new manga in the house!! Here's a look at some of the titles that have just arrived in the library that  you can place on hold and pick up through Curbside Pickup at your nearest branch.

Prince Freya by Keiko Ishihara. (Rated "older teen" for violence and blood shed): Fans of Yona of the Dawn, Snow White With Red Hair and Dawn of the Arcana will enjoy this new shojo, medieval, western fantasy. Freya only thinks of herself as a simple village girl until one day her idyllic life is shattered when she is caught up in the aftermath of treacherous Sigurdian plot. Not only that, but two brothers she is close friends with are also caught up in this plot and they will do anything to keep Freya safe. Entering the place secretly, Freya runs into her country’s beloved Prince Edvard, to whom Freya bears a striking resemblance. As Freya tries to help the dying the prince, he asks her to take his place and continue running his kingdom and keeping up his façade so that the country's enemies will not know they have succeeded in assassinating him. She now must lead his valiant knights in defending their realm before a war breaks out with a neighboring kingdom! Wil Freya be able to convince the king’s court and her kingdom that she is the strong and persuasive Prince Edvard as time goes on? Find out in this adventurous and drama-filled medieval inspired manga series!

Not Your Idol by Aoi Makino. (Rated "older teen" for scenes of assault, suggestive comments towards women, and frightening scenes including PTSD) *CW: this manga discusses topics of assault and sexual assault, reader discretion is advised*

In this psychological suspense series, Nina Kamiyama is an idol in the famous group called Pure Club. One night, at an after show fan meet and greet, a fan assaults her with a knife. Because of this, she quits the idol group, shuns her femininity and starts dressing as a boy. She transfers to a new high school and tries to keep to herself, but when her fellow classmate Hikaru Horiuchi realizes who she is, can he keep her secret? On top of that, Nina has to still keep an eye out for her stalker fan who assaulted her, while dealing with the school's resident "mean girls"! Find out what happens in this shocking, fast-paced drama series.

Wandering Witch by Jougi Shiraishi and Itsuki Nanao. (Rated "teen" for fantasy elements): Elaina has always read books about magic and adventure as a little girl. Her dream was to follow in the footsteps of a witch named Nique whom she idolized and live a life of travel. Elaine is now a full-fledged witch herself, and she sets off on her dream journey planning to travel to many destinations! With each new place she visits and new people she meets, Elaine’s world grows a little richer and she learns many new things along the way, including finding new friendships and helping people she didn’t think she would.

The Rose of Versailles by Riyoko Ikeda (rated "teen" for mild violence): *Fun fact: This is the first time that this classic shojo manga has ever been published in the USA!* For fans of  shojo manga comes the classic from the well-known author who helped create the shojo genre! During the French Revolution, Oscar Francois de Jarjeyes is young noblewoman who is raised as a son by her father. She is commander of Queen Marie Antoinette’s palace guard and is brought to King Louis XVI’s luxurious court at Versailles. The more time she spends at the court of Versailles, the more she gets to known Queen Marie Antoinette and also the goings-on of the impoverished French citizens are being treated unfairly. Oscar becomes torn between wanting to be loyal to the Queen while also wanting to help poor French citizens. On top of this, she wants to live a life of still being in the militia, but also wants to be regular girl and fall in love. Join Oscar on her drama-filled life to find out what happens! *Fun fact #2 - this manga was the inspiration for another all-time classic: Revolutionary Girl Utena*

New Digital Non-Fiction

 Ok, yes, the library is still closed, but that doesn't mean we're not still working hard behind the scenes to help you get access to great materials. Hoopla digital, for example just added some great new non-fiction titles that you can check out and read on any web-enabled device. Here are some of our favorite titles:

A Pirates Life for She: Swashbuckling Women Through the Ages by Laura Sook Duncombe: This Seven Seas History of the world’s well-known female buccaneers, tells the story of sixteen women who through the ages have sailed alongside-and sometimes in the command of their male counterparts. All of the women discussed come from all walks of life. They all desired freedom, but were never really mentioned in history until now. Author Laura Sook Duncombe looks at these women: who they were and what they fought for even when the odds were all against them. Some female swashbucklers featured are: Ancient Norse princess Alfhild, Sayyida al-Hurra of the Barbary corsairs, Grace O’Malley, and Cheng I Sao who commanded a fleet 1,400 off China in the early 19th century. These women’s courage, determination and skills they possessed is what makes them women to be feared and admired. This is great a fun read if you like learning about women’s history or pirates.

The Strange, True Tale of Frankenstein’s Creator Mary Shelley by Catherine Reef: This new book, celebrating the 200th anniversary of Frankenstein, is the real life and strange autobiography of Mary Shelley that reads like gothic novel. It is filled with scandal, death, drama, and one of the strangest yet most tragic love stories in literary history. Mary ran away to Lake Geneva with poet, Percy Bysshe Shelley (who was already married at the time when they met, how scandalous!) when she was just sixteen years old. It was during this time that she envisioned her story of Frankenstein. Even though her story was successful, it was not too long afterwards that tragedy and misfortune happened. Teen staff recommends this great, enthralling book for teens both if they need to do a research paper for school, or if they just want to read something fun for their accelerated reading!

A Teen’s Guide to Great Public Speaking: Thank-You for Coming to my TED Talk by Chris Anderson and Lorin Oberweger: This teen version of the popular adult book of the same title will help teens with tips and techniques for public speaking, with presentations among their classmates, and in their future adult lives. After reading this, teens should feel more confident and capable as public speakers. Being able to communicate clearly in front of an audience is essential in today’s workforce, whether it is doing an interview, class presentation or online videos. Ted Talks are well-known for having presenters that can speak with an inspirational tone of voice, electrifying a room, and convincing people to change their minds or inspire them to follow their dreams. This is a necessary read for teens who are especially shy and want to improve their communication. In addition, teen staff recommends it for teens who may need to be in the front of camera for online classes.

Anxiety…I’m So Done with You: A Teen's Guide to Ditching Toxic Stress and Hardwiring Your Brain for Happiness by Jodi Aman: Feeling stressed out, anxious, and alone? Feeling like you cannot control certain aspects of your life? Is it hard to tell yourself you are smart enough or capable enough to get good grades or follow your passions in life? Do you feel like anxiety is pretty much sucking the life out of you? If you are familiar with any of these feelings and want a way to out from constantly feeling anxiety-ridden then this book may be able to help you start to take control of your feelings. This book offers help for teens who are experiencing changes to in their lives because of the current epidemic. At the end of each chapter, this book also includes activity questions to help teens identify the “lies” that anxiety is telling them, as well as tips for practicing happy daily habits, and helping  build necessary skills to take back control of your and get rid of anxiety once and for all. This book is also great for parents to do along with their teens to help them with their mental health struggles.

YCLD is FINE FREE!!!!

 In case you did not know, the Yuma County Library District is a fine-free district as of Monday, September 21st, 2020.

So what exactly does this mean? It means that if you had any overdue fines on your account prior to that date, we have gone ahead and forgiven them for you. It also means that from the 21st onward, you will not be charged any fines for turning in books a little bit after their due date. 

No, don't get us wrong - we still want you to return your books on time, so other people can check them out, but this just means that you now have a little bit of wiggle room when getting them back to us. Of course, if you lose an item, damage an item, or keep it WAY past the due date, we will eventually be billing you for the cost of the book, so your account CAN still be blocked if you owe us money, it's just that now, it's a lot harder to make that happen!

So, if you think your card was blocked due to late fees and are not sure if this change means you can now use your card, please feel free to call your nearest branch and they will be happy to give you the status of your account!

New Manga at the Library!

 We just got in a bunch of new manga releases that are ready for you to check out through curbside pickup at your nearest branch! He's what's new on our shelves right now:

Toilet-Bound Hanako-Kun by Aidalro: (Rated "Teen" for fantasy violence, some blood, and supernatural spookiness.

At Kamome Academy, rumors abound about the school’s Seven Mysteries. One of these is Hanako-san. It is said that she lives in the third stall in the upstairs girl’s bathroom in the old school building. When Hanako-san is called upon, she will supposedly grant any wish! High School girl Nene Yashiro is an occult-lover who dreams of romance decides to venture into this haunted bathroom…but when she calls Hanako-san she isn’t what Nene imagined! Hanako-san is actually a boy spirit! Follow Nene and Hanako-kun on their adventure as they try to solve the school’s Seven Mysteries! And find out if Hanako-kun make Nene’s wish come true.

Blue Flag by KAITO. (Rated "Older Teen" for mild language, LGBTQ+ discussions and teen romance drama).

Taichi Ichinose can’t stand his classmate Futaba Kuze for some reason. In his third-year of high school, Taichi ends up in the same class as Futaba and his best friend, Toma. As Taichi gets to know Futaba he finds out her secret: she has a crush on Toma and wants Taichi’s help to get Toma to notice her as a love interest and get over her shyness. But Toma already has a secret crush on someone else. In this drama-filled series, join these high school friends as they navigate understanding each other, keeping secrets and falling in love for the first time!

Living-room Matsunaga by Keiko Iwashita. (Rated "Teen" for mild language and mild fan service).

High schooler Miko “Meeko” Sonoda moves into her uncle’s boarding house after her parents leave to take care of her ailing grandmother. There, she meets the fun-filled and unusual housemates, including the oldest of the bunch who acts like a grumpy mother hen, Matsunaga-san. With Matsunaga-san's help, she begins to learn and adjust to living on her own, and being independent, which can be hard, especially the first time living away from parents. But Meeko is still a teenage girl at heart and eventually she starts falling for Matsunaga-san as she begins to see his softer side. Will Meeko learn to live on her own and confess her feelings to Matsunaga-san? Find out in this cute, romantic comedy that has become a teen staff favorite read!

Given by Natsuki Kizu. (Rated "Older Teen" for language, discussions of sexual content, LGBTQ+ content, discussions of consent and suicide).

Ritsuka Uenoyama is bored with everything in his life: school, his basketball club, and even his one true passion, playing guitar. One day, he finds his favorite hidden napping spot already occupied by a strange boy, Mafuyu Sato, who is cradling a broken-stringed guitar. Uenoyama is puzzled as to why Mafuyu is sitting in his spot and his odd behavior but on a whim askes if  Mafuyu can sing. Mayu can, and the song changes Uenoyama ’s life as it pierces him to the core. In this endearing manga about friendship, music and healing from loss, Ritsuka starts to see life as much more than just boring, while Mafuyu tries to heal from personal loss and learn to express feelings he represses deep inside himself. This is manga is based on the popular anime of the same name.

Toradora Story by Yuyuko Takemiya and art by Zekkyo. (Rated "Teen" for mild language and teenage romance drama).

Takasu Ryuuji has learned the hard way that appearances can be deceiving. He has an unintentionally sharp gaze and aggressive facial features, so people think he is scary at first glance. It makes it hard for him to make friends, and especially to get a girlfriend. Despite this, he has sweet personality and on his first day of junior high school, things are starting on to look up. He gets to sit next to his only friend, Yusaku and the girl he is secretly crushing on, Minori Kushieda. But, the feeling that he is in seventh (grade) heaven, comes to screeching halt when he runs into the most feared (and tiniest) girl in school, Taiga Aisaku, who has decided to make Takasu her arch enemy. On top that, Taiga lives right next door him and happens to be Minori’s best friend! Will Takasu be able to turn Taiga into a friend and confess his feelings to Minori?

Fall Reading Program!

 Have you signed up for the Fall Reading Program yet?

That's right, for the first time ever, the Yuma County Library District is sponsoring a fall reading program! All you have to do to participate is download the ReadSquared app. That's the same app we used for this year's Virtual Summer Reading Program and it's available for free from the app stores for any Apple or Android device. You can then create a profile for yourself or for your whole family and use the app to log the amount of time you spend reading from now through the end of November. Anyone who finishes the program, by reading 1,400 minutes (that's a little over 23 hours) will be entered into a drawing for some really cute prizes. 

Logging your minutes will also let you unlock badges and mini-games you can play through the ReadSquared app. It's fun and it's easy and the best part is, you can even count the time you spend reading for school, reading to your little brothers or sisters, or listening to audio books! Sign up today by searching for Yuma County Library District on Read Squared!

Paper Child Challenge!

Calling all teen artists! Nikki here taking over today’s blog post (I totally let her, I swear! ~ Elia) and I have a challenge for you! Especially if you are bored at home! I challenge you to create a Chibi Paperchild and share your creations with us!

What is it a Chibi Paperchild you ask? A Paperchild is when paper-cut out characters from popular fandoms, especially anime, are drawn and cut out from strong paper. They are then staged in such a way to create the illusion they are interacting with real-life objects. This popular trend started in different online art communities around the year 2006 and is still popular today. In fact, Arby's restaurant even used this concept with a recent ad campaign.

So, how do you make your very own Paperchild and what is the challenge? Well, read on to find out! 

Step 1: Gather materials:

* Paper. This can be any paper, but we recommend drawing paper, or card stock since it is thicker and can help make your Paperchild stand up securely

*  Drawing materials such as a pencil to sketch out your Paperchild and an eraser for any mistakes

* Coloring  tools such as markers, crayons, or color pencils. Tip: Make sure to outline your character with a thick black outline since this will make cutting out the Paperchild much easier.

* You also need scissors, tape and a DIY paper stand (made out cardstock or cardboard preferably) to make your Paperchild stand up.

* If you prefer digital art, you can draw your Chibi Paperchild in whatever drawing program you use and then print it and cut it out. 

Step 2: Draw Your Chibi Paperchild:

You can draw any character you like, whether it is from a favorite fandom, anime, video game, graphic novel or create your own original character. 

Something to think about when drawing your character: make sure to think about what kind of scenario you want the character to be doing, along with its facial expression (very important) and how you want it to be interacting with its environment!

For example, say you want to draw Alice from Alice in Wonderland interacting with a teacup you own. Thinking about how you want Alice to interact with the teacup is important- is she trying to climb into the tea cup or maybe she is falling into it? Is she just sitting on the handle chillin'? Or maybe she just shrank tiny and is trying to climb out of the teacup. 

Facial expressions also help set the scenario too. If Alice is falling into the cup then she may have a worried or scared facial expression. If she just shrank, and is standing in the teacup then she may have a shocked expression. Drawing and thinking about how the character is interacting with the object is the most challenging aspect of this art form! But don’t worry it just takes lots of practice, so keep drawing until you are satisfied.

Don’t know how to draw? No problem! Check out the library’s physical AND digital books on drawing! You can place any of the following drawing books on hold through the library’s catalog or give us a call to have a staff member place them on hold for you. Don't forget to have your  library card handy when you call! (Please note: digital library cards do not work to place holds on physical library materials for check out).

We also have digital drawing books available on Hoopla! If you don't already know, Hoopla is a free library resources that has many eBooks, comics, audio books, TV shows, and movies all free with any physical or digital library card! If you do not have library card you can sign up for digital library card here. Here is a list of some cool chibi drawing e-books that you can check out on any tablet, phone or computer:

 

 

Step 3: Cut out your chibi paperchild and make paper stand:

Using scissors carefully cut out your chibi by following the black outline you made. Make sure to cut out any unnecessary blank paper, for this will make the character look more realistic for the illusion. Then cut a strip of card stock paper or cardboard about an inch wide to create a paper stand. 

You may need to trim the paper depending on where you are placing the stand. For my All Might I placed the stand on his right foot since I wanted the illusion of him standing on that foot. Think about where you are placing the paper stand. Make sure the stand is placed where it will not be visible when taking your photos. This may take some trial and error, which is okay. Just keep playing around until you like where it is.

Step 4: Set up the scene and take the photo:

Place your paperchild where you it want to interact with your prop. Before taking the picture, make sure the lighting is good. If you take the picture and the lighting is dark, try to open up your blinds or place a light by you. Also, adjust the settings on you camera or phone and play with different angles and lighting. Make sure also to take the photo straight on if possible. If you take it at an angle or from too high above or below, the paper stand will show and that is not what you want.

Step 5: Share your paperchild photo!

Once you are finished taking photos it is time to choose your favorite! You can share them with your friends, family and we really hope you share them with us on social media (that's the challenge part!) Send us your creations through our teen library email teen@yumalibrary.org and we will post them on this blog and on our social media pages! Or tag us on Instagram @yumalibrary so we can check out your creations! We want to see them and would love to hear from you.

Enjoy the challenge and have fun creating your paperchildren! Drop us an email anytime if you have any questions or need help getting library materials for school! Also, don’t forget to check out our YouTube page for many more activities you can do from home (like and subscribe here: YCLD YouTube) Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for updates and keep checking out this blog for our book and graphic novel recommendations!